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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. staff — a stick
  3. pass — a permit
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. pop — music
  8. file — a line of people
  9. fine — all right
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. file — a tool
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. staff — employees
  17. pop — soda
  18. shower — rain
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. staff — employees
  21. fine — high quality
  22. file — a document
  23. shower — to wash
  24. calf — a young animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com